Late Night Talking ~ Dodge Mason

Chapter 2

"Smile for the camera!"

The sound of camera shutters filled the air. Trumpets and trombones blared loudly from their line in front of the school as newly graduates strode out of the building arm in arm. Families awaited eagerly in front of the school. Standing grounded in the freshly mowed grass, mothers chased around wild little brothers with shortening attention spans whilst anxious fathers straightened their ties.

Olive's arm rested over the shoulder of her younger brother. A large, forced smile stretched across her face as her mother stood a few steps in front of them pointing a phone camera in their direction. Olive's brother squirmed beneath her hold as he hunched over in an attempt to look as pathetic as possible.

Phone still in hand, the smile on her mother's face began to look more forced than Olive's as she shifted her gaze from the phone screen to the younger boy as he continued to pout. A small crease began to form between her eyebrows as her frustration of the day started to set in. "Can you please smile for just one photo Max? That's all I'm asking for," she begged, dropping her fake smile and taking on a look of desperation.

Olive bent down slightly to try and match the height of her thirteen-year-old younger brother. The boy didn't move an inch from his hunched over position, showing no sign of possible cooperation. Olive let out a quiet snort at her brother's stubbornness as her mother simply rolled her eyes, giving in to the fact that her chances of getting a decent photo were slim.

"I don't get this whole ceremony thing. Like ok, congrats dude, you graduated high school, good job doing the bare minimum," Max wined, waving his hands around the air to emphasize the sarcasm behind his voice. 

It was now Olive's turn to roll her eyes. She glared down at him, resting her hands down by her side "At least I got here, which is farther than you're ever gonna' go, you little dumbass," she snapped back, bending her arm and using it to elbow Max in the side.

The boy flinched at the sudden hit, bending over slightly at the hip. Olive laughed at their bickering as she looked up, turning her attention away from her brother. Her gaze connected with the man that stood parked behind her mother. He was tall with a strong jawline and perfectly brushed back hair. He wore blue shirt, free of wrinkles or marks and buttoned all the way up to the top. His face showed very little signs of age and his stance was strong, almost intimidating to any unknowing people passing by.

Placing her phone into the small white purse that hung from her shoulder, Olive's mother turned towards the man. Her pale yellow dress flowed softly at the movement as she took a step closer to him. In response, he too stepped forward, lifting his right arm and laying it on her back. Never once did he break his eye contact with Olive, maintaining his strong gaze.

"Hey, let's keep the unnecessary outbursts to a minimum today, alright," he said bluntly, no emotion behind his voice, only his eyes drooping in an unamused manner. Olive swore she could smell the disappointment spewing from his pores. 

Way to bring the mood down.

Her mom only looked up at him, nodding along, however her face had scrunched slightly at his comment. "They've been acting like this since Max said his first words, Chris," she tried to joke, far more used to their rude comments than the man. Chris's demeanor didn't budge, even at the quiet chuckle Olive's mom made to try to lighten him up a bit.

Beginning to get antsy, Max started hopping around from his position next to Olive. Making it very clear he hadn't been listening to the occurring conversation, the boy continued. "Mommm, when can we go home? Charlie said I can come swimming in his pool"

The woman refused to give in. "Max be nice, it's your sister's day."

"Well I'm hungry."

It was Chris's turn to chime in. "We told you to eat something before you came here," he breathed, almost as if trying to show how little he cared for this conversation.

"And I did, but I'm a growing boy Christopher. Are you really going to deny me of my manhood?"

Olive's mother rolled her eyes once more. "You're thirteen Max, be quiet."

It was then when Olive began to zone out, not really caring for her brother's antics anymore. Maybe he was right, a whole graduation ceremony was a little stupid, but it was still her graduation. She could do whatever she wanted now. . .

well almost, at least. 

Her family had never really had "money issues" and had always been fairly stable when it came to those sorts of things. Olive grew up in a basic two-story family home, was always well fed and clothed, and never had to worry or feel embarrassed about where she came from. But given that, with a single mother in a dead end town, there were still limitations. 

Olive had always assumed she'd go to a nearby college, or whatever she could afford and end up right back in her little town of Carp, Texas. Eat, sleep, work, and die. That's how her future looked. 

Their money situation had been far better ever since her mom had married Chris a year ago, but it still wasn't "good college, get out of this town" money. 

So, to put it straight, Olive was stuck.

She would never dare to complain about her problems though. For Carp, she was still incredibly fortunate, and she knew that. It could've been so easy for that two-story house to turn into a trailer or for her lunch money to be put towards bills instead. The thought of that made her turn her attention towards the tree where Heather Nill stood with her sister. Heather's mom near, handing her a gift.

Heather had money issues, it wasn't a secret within their friend group. She had spent the last two years working her ass off selling pieces of crap technology, all just to save up enough for the hope of attending somewhere. Her mom hadn't made it any easier for her, being both an addict and an alcoholic. Heather chose not to talk about that aspect of her life quite as much though, but Olive caught on, and she was pretty sure Natalie and Bishop had too.

Olive smiled at the sight of Heather's mom. It brought her comfort to know that Heather had someone to share this moment with outside of her friends. It made her appreciate her own little audience even more. 

Olive had never tried to compare family or money situations with Heather, understanding that she was far more fortunate, but she couldn't help but listen to that nagging feeling in the back of her head that she would be stuck in Carp forever, and Olive wanted out, no matter what that meant.

And she knew how she was going to do it. She'd had it planned for a long time.

Even if it was dangerous.

Even if she could die.

N/A-
yayyy chapter 2! daily affirmation: mike faist is hot as fuck